Gender Stories

Alex Iantaffi interviews Cassandra Snow, author of Queering the Tarot. Cassandra Snow (they/them/she/her) is a professional tarot card reader, teacher, writer, and theatre maker in Minneapolis, MN. Cassandra believes tarot is a powerful tool for insight that leads to healing that leads to liberation and empowerment. Their tarot practice centers around empowerment of queer seekers, overcoming personal trauma, practical step by step business or creative plans and spiritual guidance. As a writer, tarot is also one of Cassandra's  focuses, and she penned the long running queer journey through the tarot, Queering the Tarot at Thecolu.mn and Little Red Tarot, now available on Patreon. This series has been turned into a book through RedWheel/Wieser Publishing and was released in May 2019! Cassandra's writing has been featured not only on their own blog and at Little Red Tarot, but at Take Your Pills (a mental health blog), and Howlround. Cassandra also served as Contributing Arts Editor at TheColu.mn until

Alex Iantaffi interviews Jackson Bird about his first book - Sorted: Growing Up, Coming Out, and Finding My Place -  as well as being a trans creator and so much more! Jackson Bird is a writer and digital creator dedicated to demystifying the transgender experience by sharing his and others’ stories online. You can hear some of those stories on his YouTube channel jackisnotabird. A TED Resident and Speaker, Jackson’s TED Talk “How to talk (and listen) to transgender people” has been viewed over a million times. Jackson was also a 2018 GLAAD Rising Star Digital Innovator, a YouTube NextUp Creator, and a LogoTV Social Trailblazer nominee. Currently a Civic Media Fellow at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Innovation Lab, he is also known for his past work with the Harry Potter Alliance. Jackson lives in New York City, where he regularly puts his apartment at risk with his slapdash YouTube series, Will It Waffle? You can follow him online @jackisnotabird Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHo

Alex Iantaffi interviews the creator, host and producer of the weekly, award-winning podcast Gender Reveal. Molly Woodstock is a journalist, audio producer, and inclusivity educator. They are queer and trans and biracial and other things. Molly frequently leads diversity & equity workshops with an emphasis in transgender topics. They have been featured as a gender educator in the New York Times, NPR, Washington Post, SF Chronicle, and other publications. They were a 2019 Third Coast/Ragdale radio resident and a 2019 Third Coast featured speaker. Molly has previously worked as a health editor, a vegan food writer, and the editor of the Portland visitors guide. They’ve written 500+ articles for various publications and edited hundreds more. Their bylines include such outlets as the Washington Post, Bitch, and Portland Monthly, You can find out more about Molly and their work at https://mollywoodstock.com/Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories

Alex Iantaffi interviews Sam Lofgren. They are the owner of Companion in Shadow and are dedicated to helping folks in transitional times find clarity and affirmation. They offer services as a 20+ year professional tarot reader and educator; death, abortion, and loss doula; shadow work specialist; and jewelry artisan, exploring the intersections of divination and death. Sam is the author of Tarot of Little Secrets, and the column "Death Needs a Bureaucrat" (on the paperwork involved with end of life planning). Their call to action is for folks to complete their end of life/advanced planning paperwork, to ensure their decisions about their care are honored and respected. You can find out more about Sam's work at companioninshadow.com or follow them on Instagram and Facebook  @companioninshadow Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Alex Iantaffi interviews De Ana Jones and the conversation is wide-ranging: from why we need diverse games, what stories we choose to tell and how conventions can be more truly inclusive. De Ana Jones is a blogger and podcaster from Southern California who in elementary school learned that the stories in her head were easier to keep track of on paper. She previously liked to talk about nerdy things on the Nerdgasm Noire podcast (and hopes to start again soon) and currently enjoys playing Indie RPGs with The Reclaimers group on the I Need Diverse Games twitch channel. She's had fiction previously published in Hidden Youth by Crossed Genres and an essay published by Fireside Fiction. She's also working on a web comic (https://www.patreon.com/hexschoolforgirls) and is a self-proclaimed Professional Smartass on twitter as @NaniCoolJ.Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Dr Alex Iantaffi moderates a live panel discussing 10 years of Reclaim, an organization devoted to to increasing access to mental health support for queer and trans youth so they might reclaim their lives from oppression in all of its forms. The panelists are: Janet Bystrom, Reclaim's Founder; Autumn Brown, Co-Host of the Podcast How to Survive the End of the World and former interim Executive Director of Reclaim; and Reclaim Alum Elizabeth Soleayst. They discuss Reclaim's history, how the organization touched their lives and the way in which their gender stories were shaped by Reclaim. If you're interested in queer and trans youth, mental health and healing justice, this episode is for you.If you would like to find out more about Reclaim, please visit https://www.reclaim.care/Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Dr Alex Iantaffi interviews Dan Hinz, MBA about money and relationships. Dan is the gentle soul and financial coach behind Adulting With Money. For six years, Dan has taught newlyweds how to be on the same page with money and stop money fights before they start. His 20,000+ word ebook, How to Talk About Money with Your Spouse: The Ultimate Guide, teaches couples how to focus on meaningful, lifelong habits and sprinkles in some helpful hacks. To download the free guide "How to talk about money with you spouse; the ultimate guide", please go to: adultingwithmoney.com/GSSupport the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Dr Alex Iantaffi interviews Lex Pulice-Farrow about their research on the experiences of nonbinary people in romantic relationships. They discuss the opposite of microaggressions, that is microaffirmations of nonbinary identities and experiences in romantic relationships, as well as the joys and challenges of dating as a nonbinary person. Lex Pulice-Farrow is a second-year graduate student in the Counseling Psychology doctoral program at the University of Tennessee - Knoxville. They work with Dr. Kirsten Gonzalez, and, presently, their work focuses on positive psychology of transgender, nonbinary, and gender non-conforming individuals and their experiences of community connection and belongingness. Lex hopes to someday become a professor, and use their research to advocate for policy changes of gender and sexual minority individuals. Outside of research, Lex competes in short-course triathlons, enjoys cooking, video games, reading, and hiking in East Tennessee, as well as spending time with their fiancee, dog

Alex Iantaffi and Root Holden recorded a live episode during the Podcast Movement Conference in Orlando, Florida on August 14th, 2019. They comment on the conference through the lens of gender and discuss Root's upcoming podcast Grave Decor. If you want to get a sense of what podcasters are up to when we all come together for the largest gathering in the US, this episode is for you!Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Dr Alex Iantaffi discusses the often hidden and gendered labor of making vacations happen, for those who have the privilege to do so. They break down the various components of vacations, from decision making to underlying assumptions underpinning our choices, and how gender might influence all of these things. Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Alex Iantaffi interviews Dr. Pavini Moray (pronoun: Pe), a somatic sex therapist in private practice, about changing pe's gender marker in California, erotic liberation, ancestral healing and gender blessed ancestors. Working through a trauma-informed, pleasure-centric lens, Pavini works with individuals and couples who wish to resolve the past, inhabit their bodies and their pleasure, and learn to speak their desires. Pavini hosts the podcasts “Bespoken Bones: Ancestors at the crossroads of sex, magick, and science”  and, launching in September 2019, “The Well-Pleasured Podcast.” As a queer trans witch, Pavini walks the glitter path of dancing bones, ridiculous delight and old magick. You can find out more about Pavini at: https://www.emancipating-sexuality.com/ Listen to Bespoken Bones at: https://bespokenbones.com/ or follow on Instagram @bespokenbonesSupport the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

CN: This episode addresses various forms of trauma. Please take care of yourself if you choose to listen. Thank you.For PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) Awareness Month, Alex Iantaffi talks about how complex PTSD and developmental trauma can impact our nervous systems, why gender matters when discussing trauma and how neuroplasticity gives us hope.Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Alex Iantaffi interviews CN Lester, a writer, musician, academic, and leading LGBTI activist. CN is the co-founder of the UK's first national queer youth organisation, they curate the trans art event Transpose for the Barbican, and work internationally as a trans and feminist educator and speaker. Their work has featured on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 4, SBS, The Guardian, ABC, The Independent, Newsnight, and at Sydney Opera House. Alex and CN talk about 17th century composer Barbara Strozzi, gender and CN's internationally acclaimed book "Trans Like Me". Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Alex Iantaffi reflects on the value of sisterhood in their life as a survivor and on losing a sense of belonging after they came out as trans. They look at their life and how their survival has in the past depended on using 'women's services' while exploring their own gender identity. Alex addresses domestic and sexual violence as gendered violence and invites the listeners to join them on a journey that honors their past while troubling easy binaries. CN: This episode contains mentions of domestic violence, abuse and sexual assault.Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Dr Markie Twist facilitates a panel of generation z members, ranging from elementary school age to first year college students. The panel took place live at the University of Wisconsin-Stout and Gender Stories had the privilege to record these insightful young people as they discuss gender in their generation!Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

On Trans Day of Visibility, Alex Iantaffi talks to Root Holden, a trans masculine, nonbinary person living on Anishinaabe territory, currently known as Minneapolis. They are a Reclaiming witch, podcast producer (for this podcast!), and have twenty years of experience in the tech industry. They talk about visibility across gender, geographical location, at work and as a pagan. Root talks about the process of becoming more visible to themselves in their own gender journey and how this impacted them. Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

Alex Iantaffi offers some reflections on self-consent and gender expressions and roles. They start from defining self-consent using Sophie Graham's article at https://loveuncommon.com/2017/09/28/self-consent/ and then discuss why self-consent matters when it comes to gender, how it may be constrained by issues of power and privilege and how we're impacted by social and cultural pressures, which might get in the way of respecting our own needs, desires and boundaries around gender.Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

In this episode Meg-John Barker and Alex Iantaffi answer a series of questions about all things non-binary posed by their publisher, Jessica Kingsley, to celebrate LGBT History Month in the UK and their upcoming book, Life Isn't Binary (to be published in May 2019). Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

This episode is all about language. Alex Iantaffi reflects on the multiple ways in which language and gender are connected and can define one another. They invite us to look at language through the lens of gender and to reflect on what we might open up or close down with our linguistic choices. As well as offering some definitions of words like trans, cis and non-binary, which have already been used on the show, they also invite us to look at gendered words such as madam, lady, gentleman, handsome and pretty from a more intentional perspective. If you would like to deepen this conversation, you can check out Alex's website at www.alexiantaffi.com, their book "How To Understand You Gender" and the upcoming book "Life Isn't Binary", both co-authored with Meg-John Barker. Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub

In this episode, Marcel Byrd talks with our host, Alex Iantaffi, about dance, how it intersects with gender and other aspects of identity, such as race, and the joy it can bring us. Marcel Byrd is a 25 year old dancer and public health activist that has been living in the Washington DC area for a little more than three years. An avid lover of health equity, dance, and social justice, Marcel aims to better health and wellness outcomes through creativity and access to the arts. Marcel is also about to co-host a brand new podcast These Colored Pages. You can soon find out more at thesecoloredpages.com or follow their podcast on Twitter @TheColoredPages Support the showInstagram: GenderStoriesHosted by Alex IantaffiMusic by Maxwell von RavenGender Stories logo by Lior Effinger-Weintraub